Manchester Thunder Netball and Manchester Metropolitan University (MMU) will unite to help develop and boost elite sporting talent.
It was announced yesterday, Wednesday April 27, Manchester Thunder – the three times Vitality Netball Superleague (VNSL) champions – will unite with the University – a collaboration which is said will help the uni develop elite netball talent – and benefit from high-performance training facilities and new sport science research.
Manchester Thunder at work
The team – which were crowned Netball Superleague champions in 2012, 2014 and 2019 – will be using MMU’s high-performance training facilities, retaining new talent within the North West and benefiting from research opportunities to support elite performance at the new Manchester Metropolitan University Institute of Sport.
The agreement between netball champions and Manchester Met will also be publicly show as the University’s brand proudly represented on the team’s VNSL squads dresses. Manchester Thunder will also base all its elite training activities at the University’s Platt Lane Sports Complex.
Debbie Hallas, Managing Director of Manchester Thunder, said: ‘I’m absolutely delighted to have signed this strategic agreement with Manchester Met.
‘All of our players from our pathway athletes up to our VNSL squad feel really at home in the University’s facilities at Platt Lane and this agreement provides a mechanism for us to collaborate on a far wider basis. I’m excited for what the future holds.’
Extending a strategic partnership
Tim Cable, Director of the Manchester Metropolitan Institute of Sport, explained this is all part of a ‘long-standing’ collaboration and the uni is ‘delighted’ to be extending this partnership in order to create a ‘leading hub’ for the area in elite performance.
Cable said: ‘We’re delighted to be extending our strategic partnership with Manchester Thunder. We have a long-standing collaboration with the team and the launch of our new Manchester Metropolitan University Institute of Sport – with its unrivalled research and support facilities for elite performance – can provide a new boost for both the club and University.
‘By bringing together expertise in sport and health from across the University, the city and region will become a leading hub for elite performance in netball. This will provide Manchester Thunder’s athletes and coaches with enviable sport science support and will further cement the city’s reputation as a global centre for excellence in sport, health and wellbeing.’
MMU’s Institute of Sport is a new sporting and health hub in the heart of the city. It provides support and research for elite sporting organisations and the University’s student athletes. The centre will also work with health organisations and communities to support wider healthy living and ageing.